A dangerous sequence across southern Poland ended only after officers forcibly stopped the vehicle.
Nowy Targ, Poland
Polish police detained a 59-year-old woman after a chaotic driving incident in the Nowy Targ district that involved multiple damaged vehicles, two gas stations, a pedestrian being struck and a police pursuit through the Podhale region.
The episode began at a service station in Nowy Targ, where authorities say the woman, driving a black Land Rover, damaged four parked cars and a motorcycle. The impact also caused damage to the entrance doors and façade of the station.
She then left the scene and continued toward Białka Tatrzańska. At a second service station, the situation escalated further when she struck a pedestrian and damaged additional property before driving away again.
Police rapidly circulated information about the vehicle across the district and established roadblocks in an effort to prevent the driver from continuing. Officers from Zakopane and the Czarny Dunajec police station joined the operation after the Land Rover was located.
The pursuit eventually ended in Podczerwone, where police forcibly stopped the vehicle and detained the driver. Authorities have not yet disclosed the precise condition of the injured pedestrian or explained what may have caused the woman’s behavior.
Investigators are now reconstructing the sequence of events at the different locations and examining the circumstances that led to the dangerous driving. Police have emphasized that further procedural work is under way before any final conclusions are drawn.
The case stands out because what initially appeared to be property damage quickly developed into a broader public-safety emergency involving several communities and multiple law-enforcement units. The speed with which information moved between local police teams became central to ending the incident.
It also illustrates how road incidents can rapidly move beyond conventional traffic enforcement. Once a fleeing vehicle begins endangering pedestrians, damaging public spaces and ignoring attempts to stop, police face the difficult task of ending the pursuit without creating additional risk.
The investigation will determine why the episode happened. What is already clear is that a routine Saturday morning in Podhale turned into a fast-moving emergency across several locations before police were finally able to stop it.